Author: michael klophaus

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 17, 2017
Seattle Partners Look Forward to Public Review of Proposal to Make Seattle Coliseum a World-Class Civic Asset for All
Seattle Coliseum – a renovation of KeyArena – will be NHL- and NBA-ready
SEATTLE – Seattle Partners—a collaboration between AEG, the world’s leading owner, developer and operator of sports and entertainment venues, and Hudson Pacific Properties, a premier, publicly traded real estate investment, development and operating company specializing in design-forward, next-generation spaces—today released a statement sharing their enthusiasm for and commitment to a robust public review process of their proposal to renovate KeyArena to create a world-class Seattle Coliseum.
Today the Seattle City Council held their first public hearing regarding the proposals submitted on April 12.
“We commend the City of Seattle for establishing a robust public review process for our proposal to create a world-class arena at Seattle Center that will be an iconic, accessible civic asset for years to come,” said AEG Facilities President Bob Newman and Hudson Pacific Properties Chief Investment Officer Alex Vouvalides. “We are proud of our companies’ deep roots in Seattle, as well as those of our industry-leading project partners. We are honored to share our vision for the Seattle Coliseum and serve as stewards of the next-generation entertainment and sports venue Seattle deserves. We look forward to working with Seattle’s elected leaders, community representatives on the Arena Advisory Panel, City staff and the public to ensure our goal that the Seattle Coliseum honor this city’s core values and historic legacy, and provide incredible fan experiences, from music to professional sports.”
You may read more about Seattle Partners’ proposal at SeattleColiseum.Com, as well as design concepts for the renovated facility. A review of Seattle Partners’ proposal:
NBA- and NHL-ready
No risk to taxpayers
No new tax assessments
No tax exemptions
Estimated $144 million in surplus arena revenues to city government over course of the proposed lease
City retains ownership of state-of-the-art facility
Seattle Coliseum will be built to attract and accommodate future NBA and NHL teams, though the proposal does not rely on team acquisitions before moving forward with the redevelopment. This approach has been successful in other iconic markets.
Seattle Partners will invest $5 million to accelerate existing transportation strategies around the arena and to create a shared mobility hub adjacent to the arena.
Seattle Partners has long-standing, close partnerships with unions and labor groups. Seattle Partners is committed to supporting a diverse supply chain that will look to include women-owned, minority-owned, and – as the only company in the arena development industry to do so – LGBTQ-owned businesses in the procurement process.
Details on financing
Seattle Partners proposes a partnership with the City that places 100 percent of all financing risk and guarantees on the private sector. The proposal is also structured to generate significant excess revenues to the City. Three revenue sources from the arena itself – fully guaranteed by Seattle Partners – will be dedicated to finance bonding capacity, meaning there is no risk to the City and no up-front City cost. In addition, an independent financial analysis projects that there will be surplus from these revenues generated by the arena of $144 million over the course of the lease. That surplus goes straight to the City.
There are no new taxes or requests for existing public capital. Seattle Partners is also not asking for any tax exemptions to help finance their proposal.
About AEG
Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, AEG is the world’s leading sports and live entertainment company. With offices on five continents, AEG operates in the following business segments: AEG Facilities, which is affiliated with or owns, manages or consults with more than 120 preeminent arenas, stadiums, theaters, clubs and convention centers around the world including The O2 Arena, the Sprint Center and the Mercedes-Benz Arenas; AEG Live, which is dedicated to all aspects of live contemporary music performances, including producing and promoting global and regional concert tours, music and special events and world-renowned festivals; AEG Real Estate, which develops world-class venues, as well as major sports and entertainment districts like STAPLES Center and L.A. LIVE; AEG Sports, which is the world’s largest operator of sports franchises and high-profile sporting events; and AEG Global Partnerships, which oversees worldwide sales and servicing of sponsorships including naming rights, premium seating and other strategic partnerships. Through its worldwide network of venues, portfolio of powerful sports and music brands, AXS.com ticketing platform, AXS cable television channel and its integrated entertainment districts, AEG entertains more than 100 million guests annually. More information about AEG can be found at www.aegworldwide.com.
About Hudson Pacific Properties
Hudson Pacific Properties is a vertically integrated real estate company focused on acquiring, repositioning, developing and operating high quality office and state-of-the-art media and entertainment properties in select West Coast markets. Hudson Pacific invests across the risk-return spectrum, favoring opportunities where it can employ leasing, capital investment and management expertise to create additional value. Founded in 2006 as Hudson Capital, the company went public in 2010, electing to be taxed as a real estate investment trust. Through the years, Hudson Pacific has strategically assembled a portfolio totaling over 17 million square feet, including land for development, in high growth, high-barrier-to-entry submarkets throughout Northern and Southern California and the Pacific Northwest. The company is a leading provider of design-forward, next-generation workspaces for a variety of tenants, with a focus on Fortune 500 and leading growth companies, many in the technology, media and entertainment sectors. As a long-term owner, Hudson Pacific prioritizes tenant satisfaction and retention, providing highly customized build-outs and working proactively to accommodate tenants’ growth. Hudson Pacific trades as a component of the Russell 2000® and the Russell 3000® indices. For more information visit HudsonPacificProperties.com.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 12, 2017
AEG and Hudson Pacific Properties Partner to Deliver World-Class Arena to Seattle
Seattle Coliseum – a renovation of KeyArena – will be NHL- and NBA-ready
SEATTLE – Seattle Partners—a collaboration between AEG, the world’s leading owner, developer and operator of sports and entertainment venues, and Hudson Pacific Properties, a premier, publicly traded real estate investment, development and operating company specializing in design-forward, next-generation spaces—today submitted their proposal to the City of Seattle to renovate KeyArena to create the Seattle Coliseum, a state-of-the-art sports and entertainment arena that is integrated into the neighborhood, responsive to the needs of all Seattleites, and further enhances the vibrancy of Seattle Center.
Public benefits to the City of Seattle:
No risk to taxpayers
No new tax assessments
Estimated $144 million in surplus arena revenues to city government over course of the proposed lease
Projected $3 billion in tax revenues over course of the project
City retains ownership of state-of-the-art facility
Seattle is a special place – every truly great project in this city relies on deep partnerships. That’s why AEG and Hudson Pacific Properties are not only excited to formally join together in proposing a vision for renovating KeyArena, but are honored to have the opportunity to partner with Seattle city government, Seattle Center tenants and neighbors so that the arena is a world-class civic asset, accessible to all, for years to come,” said Bob Newman, AEG Facilities President and Victor J. Coleman, Hudson Pacific Properties’ CEO and Chairman in a joint statement.
Seattle Partners launched a new website today – SeattleColiseum.com – to engage the local community and share information during the public review process. Initial design concepts of Seattle Partners’ proposal for the Seattle Coliseum are also available on the website. Seattle Partners may also be followed on Twitter @SeattleColiseum and on Facebook at Facebook.com/SeattleColiseum.
Key elements of Seattle Partners’ proposal:
The Seattle Coliseum will be built to attract and accommodate future NBA and NHL teams, though the proposal does not rely on team acquisitions before moving forward with the redevelopment. This approach has proven successful in other iconic markets.
The Seattle Coliseum will be built as a state-of-the-art entertainment venue for sports, concerts, special events and convention programming.
Seattle Partners is committed to the Urban Design Framework and Uptown’s vision for an Arts & Culture District around the development site.
Seattle Partners will invest $5 million to accelerate existing transportation strategies around the arena and to create a shared mobility hub adjacent to the arena.
Seattle Partners will invest in the Lake2Bay Corridor to help embrace a pedestrian and bicycle-friendly environment to encourage non-automobile access to the arena.
Seattle Partners has long-standing, close partnerships with unions and labor groups. Seattle Partners is committed to supporting a diverse supply chain that will look to include women-owned, minority-owned, and – as the only company in the arena development industry to do so – LGBTQ-owned businesses in the procurement process.
Both AEG and Hudson Pacific Properties have strong ties to Seattle. Each company currently operates in Seattle and has strong records of success in our community. AEG has been in Seattle for over a decade, successfully servicing events at KeyArena and overseeing Bumbershoot, the Marymoor Park concert series and the Showbox theaters. AEG also has outstanding relationships with Seattle Center. To date Hudson Pacific Properties has invested approximately $750 million in Seattle and currently owns and operates 1.5 million square feet of real estate in the market.
Seattle Partners knows from experience that Seattle Center is the right venue for a world-class arena and are poised to bring that vision to life with their community partners. At AEG, that experience includes operations at over 120 venues on five continents, ownership of 16 professional sports franchises—including ownership of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings and management of privately held ownership shares of the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers—and unmatched industry expertise in creating experiences that make people cheer.
The proposed design celebrates the storied history of the Seattle Coliseum and Seattle Center as bedrocks of the city’s civic and cultural identity. This is why Seattle Partners proposes to renovate the venue, rather than build a new facility at the same location. By adapting and reusing an existing civic asset, the revitalized Seattle Coliseum will be a cutting-edge homage to Seattle's historical legacy.
The renovated Seattle Coliseum will provide increased capacity for entertainment and sporting events, including the latest in luxury suites – top-line suites and terraced seats – while retaining the intimacy of the current configuration and Seattle’s legendary 12th Man phenomenon. Additionally, the Seattle Coliseum will be built as the “Venue of the Future,” featuring the latest facilities, technologies and services amenities.
Seating capacities for the new Seattle Coliseum:
Events:
14,832 (180-degree stage configuration)
15,750 (240-degree stage configuration)
16,770 (280-degree stage configuration)
19,202 (360-degree stage configuration)
Hockey: 17,120
Basketball: 18,113
“We are focused first on the City’s review process for this project and look forward to sharing the unique merits of our proposal. Seattle deserves a partner on this project who has a history of successful project delivery, deep experience developing world-class urban arenas, and a commitment to everything that makes this city so special,” said Newman and Coleman.
Key members of Seattle Partners’ project vision and delivery, many with deep Seattle roots, include: Sellen, Nelson/Nygaard, Gensler, Rosetti, AECOM-Hunt, Seattle Structural and Nyhus Communications.
“As partners on this great opportunity, we look forward to meeting – and exceeding – Seattle’s expectations,” said Newman and Coleman.
To bring a viable, cutting-edge and sustainable arena to Seattle Center, Seattle Partners will not seek new taxes or existing public capital from the City of Seattle. Seattle Partners will request to partner with the City to align on goals, and Seattle Partners will guarantee all financing, public and private, through revenues that would not exist but for the renovations proposed for the Seattle Coliseum. This proposal entails no risk for the City of Seattle. It puts the City in the best possible position to attract an NHL and NBA team, but it is not contingent on a team prior to starting the project. An independent financial analysis projects that, over the term of the lease, the arena will generate more than $144 million in surplus revenue, which will go directly to the City of Seattle.
Seattle Partners is honored to submit this proposal—a proposal that will fully realize Seattle's vision for the Seattle Coliseum and write the next chapter of Seattle’s shared history. Seattle Partners is committed to being the team that attracts the NBA and NHL to Seattle through a world-class, state-of-the-art facility and deep industry and community relationships.
This will be Seattle’s arena, built for the people of this great city.
About AEG
Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, AEG is the world’s leading sports and live entertainment company. With offices on five continents, AEG operates in the following business segments: AEG Facilities, which is affiliated with or owns, manages or consults with more than 120 preeminent arenas, stadiums, theaters, clubs and convention centers around the world including The O2 Arena, the Sprint Center and the Mercedes-Benz Arenas; AEG Live, which is dedicated to all aspects of live contemporary music performances, including producing and promoting global and regional concert tours, music and special events and world-renowned festivals; AEG Real Estate, which develops world-class venues, as well as major sports and entertainment districts like STAPLES Center and L.A. LIVE; AEG Sports, which is the world’s largest operator of sports franchises and high-profile sporting events; and AEG Global Partnerships, which oversees worldwide sales and servicing of sponsorships including naming rights, premium seating and other strategic partnerships. Through its worldwide network of venues, portfolio of powerful sports and music brands, AXS.com ticketing platform, AXS cable television channel and its integrated entertainment districts, AEG entertains more than 100 million guests annually. More information about AEG can be found at www.aegworldwide.com.
About Hudson Pacific Properties
Hudson Pacific Properties is a vertically integrated real estate company focused on acquiring, repositioning, developing and operating high quality office and state-of-the-art media and entertainment properties in select West Coast markets. Hudson Pacific invests across the risk-return spectrum, favoring opportunities where it can employ leasing, capital investment and management expertise to create additional value. Founded in 2006 as Hudson Capital, the company went public in 2010, electing to be taxed as a real estate investment trust. Through the years, Hudson Pacific has strategically assembled a portfolio totaling over 17 million square feet, including land for development, in high growth, high-barrier-to-entry submarkets throughout Northern and Southern California and the Pacific Northwest. The company is a leading provider of design-forward, next-generation workspaces for a variety of tenants, with a focus on Fortune 500 and leading growth companies, many in the technology, media and entertainment sectors. As a long-term owner, Hudson Pacific prioritizes tenant satisfaction and retention, providing highly customized build-outs and working proactively to accommodate tenants’ growth. Hudson Pacific trades as a component of the Russell 2000® and the Russell 3000® indices. For more information visit HudsonPacificProperties.com.
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